S.F. Ballot Measure Would Prohibit Cuts in Children's Services

A ballot measure to be decided by
San Francisco voters Nov. 5 would
guarantee a set level of funding for
children's services and generate additional
money for such services
through property-tax revenues.

The measure, which observers believe
would be the first of its kind
adopted by a U.S. city or state, is designed
to "insulate" children from a
budget process in which they have
no voice, according to its backers.

Advocates say the amendment to
the City charter would help San
Francisco bridge gaps in children's
services that are being reported nationwide,
ranging from inadequate
prenatal care for mothers and
health insurance for children to a
shortage of child care and a backlog
of child-abuse cases.

While San Francisco has the lowest percentage of children of any major
city in the nation, statistics indicate
that its children are more likely to be
removed from their homes than
youths anywhere else in the state,
and that the rate of sexually transmitted
diseases among its teenagers
is 10 times the national average.

Because children do not vote or
lobby, they "are the most popular
constituency in terms of rhetoric
and the least popular in terms of resources,"
said Margaret Brodkin,
executive director of Coleman Advocates
for Children and Youth, a local
group that spearheaded the campaign
to place the measure on the
ballot.

"Children simply can't compete
with adult special interests when it
comes to getting their fair share in
the budget process," she said.
Coleman Advocates decided to
take a new tack, Ms. Brodkin said,
after it failed for four years, "using
the traditional political and budget
process," to garner support for a so-called
"children's budget."

The group decided to take the issue
directly to voters, she added, "because the political process rewards
the constituencies that the
politicians believe they owe-they
don't want to waste political chits on
a constituency they think has no political clout."

Reductions Barred

The measure would amend the
city charter to bar any reduction in
children's services below their current
base-now estimated at from
$75 million to $100 million-for the
next 10 years.

In addition, it would dedicate 2.5
percent of existing property-tax revenues-
raising an estimated $6 million
the first year and about $13 million
the second year-to new and
existing children's programs.

Three-quarters of the funds raised
under the measure would be equally
divided among child care, job training
for youths, and health and social
services for children, while the remaining
portion would support
child-related services such as recreation
and libraries.

According to Coleman Advocates,
the measure would help subsidize
child care for about 1,000 additional
children; establish mental-health
and family-support centers to help
prevent child abuse; provide prenatal
care for all expectant mothers
now without care; expand AIDS prevention
and school-based health
care; and offer job training for 1,500
youths.

The measure's backers include
more than 60 children's and youths'
groups, clubs, charities, unions, and
advocacy groups as diverse as the
Alice B. Toklas Lesbian and Gay
Democratic Club, the United Latin
American Political Association, and
the Green Party of California.

The petition drive to place the
measure on the ballot garnered
67,000 signatures-well beyond the
number needed to qualify-and an
August poll of 600 registered voters
by the San Francisco Chronicle indicated
that 75 percent of those polled
supported the proposal.

Hindrance to Flexibility?

Groups in opposition, however,
say earmarking funds for a particular
set of programs would rob the city of the flexibility it needs to address
pressing problems as they
arise.

If funding for children's programs
were "frozen 10 the budget," said
Chris Bowman, a spokesman for the
San Francisco Republican Party, "it
means that if there is a shortfall; basically
funding has to come out of
other programs, and we don't think
that's appropriate."

He also cited the need to address
other crises, such as homelessness
and AIDS.

“It makes it difficult for the city to
respond to a need that may come
up," said Carol Piasente, a spokesman
for the city's chamber of commerce.

"The proposed initiative will seriously
impact the city's ability to
react to changing civic needs and to
balance future budgets," a statement
from the chamber concluded.
But supporters say the measure
could serve as a national model.

"I'm really pleased to see this
movement spreading," said Jule M.
Sugarman, who recently launched
the Center for Effective Services for
Children, based in Washington.

Mr. Sugarman, one of the
founders of Head Start, has long argued
that an earmarked trust
fund-financed in large part
through a new tax source-is the
only way to ensure a stable, sustainable
funding source for children's
programs.

Senator Christopher J. Dodd,
Democrat of Connecticut, introduced
a bill last spring that would
establish such a fund at the federal
level, but he conceded that enactment
could be years away. (See Education
Week, May 22,1991.)

A statewide initiative that would
have guaranteed a certain amount
of funding for children's services in
Washington State was unsuccessful
a few years ago. Last year, however,
Seattle voters approved a new property-
tax levy raising $8.5 million a
year for seven years to support a
wide range of school and community
programs for children and families.

But the Seattle plan does not shelter
children's services from cuts as
does the San Francisco measure.
If the amendment passes, San
Francisco officials will have 90 days
to submit to the city's board of supervisors
a plan for how to allocate the
monies.

Mayor Art Agnos, who supports
the measure, has launched discussions
with a wide range of experts to
help set priorities, said Rita Boyle,
director of the Mayor's office of children,
youth, and families.

City officials also hope to use the
planning process to coordinate children's
services more effectively.

The measure, Ms. Boyle said,
would create "some fiscal incentive
for various agencies to collaborate
with each other and better integrate
their services."

Vol. 11, Issue 08, Page 8

Published in Print: October 23, 1991, as S.F. Ballot Measure Would Prohibit Cuts in Children's Services

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